


First Fish

by AlliCassandra



Series: Rutherford one-shots [2]
Category: Dragon Age - All Media Types
Genre: Aromantic Asexual Mia Rutherford, Asexual Character, Canon Disabled Character, F/M, Family, Family Bonding, Family Fluff, Fishing, Fluff, Not Beta Read, family outing
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-01-10
Updated: 2021-01-10
Packaged: 2021-03-13 23:15:14
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,249
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28661562
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AlliCassandra/pseuds/AlliCassandra
Summary: After a lifetime in the Circle, Evie catches her first fish on a fun day out with Cullen and her sister-in-law.
Relationships: Cullen Rutherford & Mia Rutherford, Cullen Rutherford/Female Trevelyan, Female Inquisitor & Mia Rutherford, Female Inquisitor/Cullen Rutherford
Series: Rutherford one-shots [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2071398
Kudos: 6





	First Fish

**Author's Note:**

> So, in a rare moment for me, I wrote and revised this in one sitting! I hope you like this; I have several unpublished fics with Mia as a character, and it's always fun to have her involved--I adore writing sibling relationships! I also see her as aroace since she never mentions having a family of her own in her letters to Cullen. 
> 
> Have a great day, all, and enjoy more Cullen/Inky fluff! 😍

“So we’re really gonna sit here and wait for the fish to bite the hook?” Evie said, already squirming. She gestured grandly out at the lake with her arm-and-a-half. It was a nice picture to frame with nothing but her hand. It was a clear day, the sun reflected brightly on the beautiful Ferelden lake.

“You bet we are. It’s relaxing yet exciting. You’ll like it,” Mia said. She cast out of her line from her seat on the dock sandwiched in between her brother and his wife. Evie was beginning to understand what her husband meant about Mia having a smug grin. The hook landed with a light plop. Jealousy pricked at Evie. She had a feeling she would get her hook stuck in a tree. Perfect Mia.

“I don’t know if staring at a lake and waiting for a fish to tug on a piece of string is exciting,” Evie said, beating her legs against the side of the rough wooden dock. From behind them, Lucky the Mabari looked up from his snooze in the sun. Feeling a little guilty for waking up the family dog, Evie switched to drumming her fingers on the side of the dock instead.She’d figured he’d lay down for a few minutes and then go chase the ducks. The ducks infuriated him.

“Just because you spent your childhood hunting bears or whatever nobles do—”Cullen began.

“Hey, _I_ didn’t hunt the bear! Father did! I just rode along on my pony and took in the scenery!”

The two Rutherford siblings exchanged a glance that clearly said _she had her own pony_.

“Well, _our_ father took us, Bran and Rose fishing,” Cullen said. “He found it relaxing after a hard day of work on the farm.”

Evie saw in her mind the picture of a blond man with rough hands and curly hair sitting down wearily on a dock and casting out a fishing line with three children running around him screaming. Evie knew her husband well enough to assume that Cullen had probably taken fishing very seriously and had probably asked his father about how they were going to cook the fish.

“Aw, and did you help him?” Evie asked, distracted from her boredom at the thought of a younger version of her husband learning how to fish.

“He did!” Mia answered. “I would be supervising the younger kids climbing up trees, and Cullen would be asking Father how to cast the line, how to cook the fish, all that stuff. I had to learn how to catch a fish from scratch after Cullen left to become a templar.”

“Aw, that’s so cute,” Evie said as Cullen handed her a baited hook. She eyed it with so much suspicion one would think it was a Venatori. “So I just… Sling… it backward and then push it forward?”

“Yes and be careful not to hit anything. Or get the hook caught in a tree,” her husband said in typical Cullen fashion.

“I’ll _try_.”

“Yes, but somehow I still see you over-enthastically flinging your pole backwards and then calling to me ‘Cullen, I’ve got my hook stuck up a tree!’”

“I’ll try _really_ hard,” she corrected.

“I still can’t believe you never did this at all when you where on the road traveling with the Inquisition.” Mia sounded perplexed.

Cullen laughed. “Are you kidding me? Most of the time I saw her leaving the castle with the likes of Dorian or Varric. Neither of them would be caught dead fishing.”

“Ah, the pampered Tevinter mage?”

“The very same, sister.”

“And _the_ Varric?”

“Yes, the Varric.”

“You never got me his autograph. All that time you lived in Kirkwall! You’re a failure of a brother!”

“Hmph.”

To Mia, Evie said, “no I never got around to trying this while traveling with the Inquisition. The amount of things I wanted to stop and try but Cassandra would say ‘Evelyn, we are running short on time.’”

Cullen gave a boyish chuckle at her imitation of Cassandra.

Evie felt the corners of her mouth turn up.She’d only heard that chuckle a few times when they’d worked for the Inquisition, but now they had both retired to private life, she heard it often and she loved it. It was fun getting to see the playful side of her husband who had a lot in common with a twelve year old boy. When he wasn’t worrying, of course.

When she looked at the Rutherford siblings, they were both looking back at her.

“So, are you going to do it?” Mia asked. “I’ve got faith in you. Also, you’re a mage. If something goes wrong, you can heal it right? Cullen says you did a lot of healing on the field.”

“Well, yeah…” She frowned. ‘You can heal it if something goes wrong’ wasn’t exactly a vote of confidence. “But a vote of confidence would be nice. I’m probably going to mess it up somehow.”

Cullen put a hand on her shoulder. It made her heart tumble like she was thirteen again. “You can do it, I’ve got confidence in you.”

_And if I do get the hook stuck up a tree, Cullen can always get it down for me._

Evie tightened her grip on the pole, glad that fishing at least seemed easy to do one-handed. She drew back her pole and then let it fly.

_Plop!_

“Yay!” Bother Rutherford siblings cheered as it landed in the water. A thought occurred to Evie as she swallowed.

“Uh, I only have one arm now. How am I supposed to reel it back it?”

“I’ll help you,” Cullen assured her. “It’s not a competition.”

“And I should be glad it’s not, or you’d gladly leave your one-armed wife to fend for herself.” She kept an eagle eye on where she saw her line met the water.

“I would not,” Cullen insisted.

“We both know you’re very competitive,” Evie said noncommittally but also not judging. Cullen was competitive and it wasn’t something she resented. It was pretty hot, actually. She’d glad lose if they were racing to catch the most fish if it meant watching Cullen compete for the most fish caught.

Cullen sighed. “I am.”

Just as he said that, her line back to shake.

“Cullen I’ve got one!”

True to his word, her husband literally lent a hand to help her reel in the fish, which flopped once they pulled it in. Evie felt uncomfortable as it flopped helplessly.

Cullen knelt down and after a few movements where Evie couldn’t tell what he was doing, the fish was dead.

“Well, I think this will do for our dinner,” Mia said, picking up the fish. She walked over to a kit nearby, obviously planning to get the fish ready to eat.

“I can’t believe I caught the fish we’re cooking for dinner!” She was aware her excitement sounded a bit twelve-years-old, but she couldn’t help it. Years in the Circle and she’d never had an experience like this. She felt pride bursting forward.

“I’m very proud of you,” Cullen said, kissing her on the forehead. “You did well.”

“You know, it was kind of exciting,” Evie admitted, knowing Cullen and Mia wouldn’t let her live the admission down.

“Oh good we can do this again soon then,” Mia said as she briefly looked up from the fish.

Evie smiled, thoughts going to her family, stories and jokes, a campfire, and fish that would surely come later this evening.

“Very soon.”


End file.
